5/4/2022 0 Comments Week 5: Exploring the Big CityAs April ends, the weather starts to get warmer and I don't need to wear two layers some days. But for the rainy days, it gets chilly and my friends and I don't want to go out since it can be a hassle. Additionally, I've started to buy clothes that protect me from the rain as rainy season gets closer which begins in June. So far, I've gotten a rain jacket to protect my upper-body. However, I need to buy water resistant shoes because the ones I have get very dirty whenever it rains. I have gotten accustomed to living in my dorm and have come to understand almost all of the rules and etiquette. I have met a few of the international students that live in the same dorm as me and have talked a few times. From the people that I've met, most of the students come from Europe and Asia. The biggest group of people I see are the French students. From what I can presume, they are a group of friends who all planned together to study at Keio University. One thing I forgot to mention in my previous post is that dorm I am in has a cafeteria on the first floor and breakfast and dinner is served on weekdays. The food being served is cheaper compared to if I bought something going out and the quality is still pretty good. There have been many days where I preferred eating the cafeteria food more than going out because it was cheaper and more convenient. The food has been different everyday. While Japanese food is the main cuisine, there is also western food like spaghetti, omelettes, grilled cheese, and other dishes. For the cafeteria alone, I am happy that I chose the dorm I am in. Going out and speaking to people in Japanese has still been a struggle as I still do not have a grasp of the language. Luckily I have been able to get by as the people I speak to get the gist of what I am saying or asking. Through the conversations that I have had, I noticed that most people do not know English. Whenever I go to a restuarant or a store and require help, I start by asking if they know English and everyone I have spoken to says no. This means that it us up to me to try and figure out a way to get my message to them. It often requires me to do a lot of pointing, body language, and trying to understand what they are saying. It usually ends up with getting the message across, but it is difficult. The same thing happens the other way around. Whenever someone asks me a question, I do not know what they asked me so the person I am speaking with needs to figure out a way to explain it to me. The thing that I am currently looking forward to are going to big amusement parks, looking at places to shop, and Golden Week. Tokyo has Disneyland as well as Universal Studios Japan. My friends and I want to go to these amusement parks and have been trying to plan a day for both places. As previously mentioned, I feel very underdressed compared to the people in Toyko. So I plan to go out and find good places to buy clothing. So far, Muji, UNIQLO, and GU have been great places to buy clothes at a reasonable cost. But I plan to wait until summer time to buy clothes that I could wear when I come back to Hawaii. Lastly, Japan has a whole week where holidays are lined up so almost everyone is free. Golden week is form April 29 to May 5. But Keio University only allows students to have days off on two of the days, so we do not have the whole week off.
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